LOTS of 1920s TIES

[Marc Chevalier]

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We've seen a lot of '30s and '40s ties around here, but what about 1920s ties?


Well, they're a lot harder to find. Ties from the '20s (or more specifically, 1925-'30) were made of silk, rayon, linen, cotton, or wool. Their designs tended to be more conservative than those of '30s ties, but there are some BIG exceptions to this rule.


Most, but not all, 1920s ties are slightly narrower and shorter than their '30s counterparts. You may be surprised at how "1950s"-looking some of them are.


Below are all of my ties from the Roaring Twenties. Nearly all of them came from the estate of a man who died in 1930. They were placed in a trunk and forgotten for 75 years.


If you have any '20s ties, please post them here!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

 

[scotrace]

Amazing - I would have placed those designs in another decade. Some of the colors/patterns (though not fabric) even have a 70's feel.

Excellent!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Glad you enjoyed them! It just goes to show you that practically nothing is new in fashion, especially when it comes to fabric patterns; there's just a constant recycling, with a few tweaks added to or subtracted from the mix.

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[Baron Kurtz]

Which features place them in the 20s? Obviously they did, if the man died in 1930. Except for some very obvious features (ie width in the 40s and materials from 50s onwards) i've never been able to get a good feeling when picking up a tie to demarcate between 30s and 20s. Though it is quite obvious (shape, fabric, width) when a tie came from before 40s.

So, any of the ones above, i would place before 1940 (largely because of the extremely exaggerated "thin" end taper) but i see this all through the 30s as well.

bk

 

[Mr. Rover]

I have two, maybe 3, ties from the 1920's, two of which are from American Vintage classics. It seems to me that the main thing is the construction of the wider side. Also, the pictures really cannot show a 1920's tie to be a 1920's tie. The proportions look almost 30's, but if you tie it with the ends meeting at the bottom, the tie would barely hit your sternum. They're that tiny! (And I have a 14.5" neck!) Also, the knots they make are very, very small if you tie them longer. You need the collar bar or a small knot space to sport it.

 

[herringbonekid]

i really like the dashy/flecky ones.

i actually like a lot of the 50s suit and sports fabrics with that look too, but not the fit so much.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

As I mentioned above, mid to late '20s ties tend to be very slightly narrower and shorter than '30s ties. Also, the better quality ones often had satin linings ... you can see some examples in the photos. (In the early '30s, cheap ties began to appear with rayon linings at the bottom of the tips. The tie industry called this "false tipping".)

What really helped me to date the ties above is that they'd been locked up in a trunk since 1930.


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[Mr. Rover]

Would this Brooks Bros. tag be more 30's? I don't remember the exact time that the anti "silk weighting" movement began in the advertising of ties.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

i really like the dashy/flecky ones.

Agreed. Those are great.

bk

 

[herringbonekid]

you have to try and imagine how LITTLE ties would have changed from '25 -'35. i'd probably have said most of these were 30s too. but then lots of later 30s ties look 40s.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

The backlash against heavily "weighted" silk began in the '30s. Here's my own Brooks Brothers tie from that decade:

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[Marc Chevalier]

you have to try and imagine how LITTLE ties would have changed from '25 -'35.

True. The really BIG changes in tie designs occurred between the late '30s and the early '50s. During and after WWII, ties went hog wild.

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[Marc Chevalier]

This tie isn't mine, but I have to share it with you. The design and colors are are flat-out, rip roarin' 1920s:

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[scotrace]

What is wrong with me?

I'm trying very hard to visualize most of these ties with 1920's men in 1920's suits and I cannot seem to bring it together. Is it that my mental images are stuck in B&W photographs?
After looking at issues of Esquire from the '30's and '40's until my eyes swim, visualizing a tie from that period in the context of what it might be seen with isn't too hard, though I'm a complete novice.

You are making me re-think the dates on all the vintage ties I own!

 

[Marc Chevalier]

Is it that my mental images are stuck in B&W photographs?

Yes, in the sense that B & W photos don't show ties to their best advantage. Once you've trained your eye to look for these kinds of ties, you'll begin to spot them more and more. I see them all the time in silent films, for example.


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[scotrace]

That's it. I've been trying to train my eye in a certain way and... well. The software is gagging on the new data.

 

[jamespowers]

I suppose I am having a hard time telling the difference. Here are a few examples:

Any 20s in there?

Regards,

J

 

[Marc Chevalier]

I'm guessing that the tie in the center of the top photo is a '20s tie. It's just a bit narrower at the bottom than the other ('30s) ties you have there.

Also, it appears to have a coppery gold color to it. I've found that '20s ties are more likely to have gold coloring, while '30s ties have more silver in them.


The third tie in the bottom photo is also a bit narrower, but the color combination (very dark brown and malachite green, if I see aright) is associated with the '30s.

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[jamespowers]

I'm guessing that the tie in the center of the top photo is a '20s tie. It's just a bit narrower at the bottom than the other ('30s) ties you have there.

Also, it appears to have a coppery gold color to it. I've found that '20s ties are more likely to have gold coloring, while '30s ties have more silver in them.


The third tie in the bottom photo is also a bit narrower, but the color combination (very dark brown and malachite green, if I see aright) is associated with the '30s.

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Ok, so I am less perplexed than I thought. That is about how I saw them. I got those for less than a $1 a piece from the same guy and same basket of ties.
The brown one is not extremely dark and the green is more of a forest green than Malachite actually.
I really need to post the other members of my collection as I took pictures of them due to a recent consolidation of the collection. [huh] The pictures are there but I have to upload them. We'll see if I get time.
For now at least I know what I am looking at.

Regards,

J